Dhaka Electric Supply Company (DESCO) wants to generate 120 megawatts (MW) of solar power by setting up on-grid solar systems in its eight operational circles, officials have said.
In this regard, it recently invited bids from international engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractors to design, build, finance, operate, and maintain the systems.
DESCO said it wants to set up the systems to support the government's clean energy initiative and increase the share of non-fossil energy consumption.
The systems will be set up on rooftops and other urban spaces in areas within the DESCO jurisdiction to generate on-grid solar power, which will be integrated with the company's distribution network through net metering.
In each of the eight operational circles, DESCO plans to generate 15MW of solar power.
In the first lot, the solar systems will be installed in the Uttara Circle encompassing Uttara East, Uttara West, Turag, and Uttara 3rd Phase.
The second lot will be built in the Dakshinkhan Circle comprising Uttarkhan, Dakshinkhan, and Shah Kabir areas.
The third lot will be installed in the Tongi Circle where areas like Tongi East, Tongi West, and Tongi Central are included.
The fourth lot encompasses the Baridhara Circle where areas like Baridhara, Bashundhara Residential Area, Khilkhet, Purbachal, Nikunja, and the adjacent ones are included.
In the fifth lot, the systems will be set up in the Gulshan Circle where areas like Gulshan, Banani, Badda, Dhaka Cantonment Area, and Joarshahara are located.
The sixth lot will be installed in the Pallabi Circle, which includes Pallabi, Kafrul, Ibrahimpur, and the adjacent areas.
Under the seventh lot, the green power systems will be installed in the Agargaon Circle encompassing Agargaon, Monipur, Kalyanpur, and the adjacent areas.
The eighth lot will be installed in the Rupnagar Circle comprising Shah Ali, Rupnagar, Eastern Housing, and the adjacent areas.
DESCO said interested EPC contractors should have the experience of successful development and operation of a minimum of 5MW solar energy projects to be eligible for bidding.
They should also have the financial capacity to undertake the project and must comply with national and international regulations.
DESCO will buy electricity from the contractors at prices lower than retail electricity rates fixed by Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC).
A senior DESCO official said a total of 116.879MWp of rooftop solar electricity is being generated presently under net metering, where the company's share is only 7.864MWp.
He said DESCO has scopes for contributing more to generating green electricity, which is why it has now invited bids to set up rooftop solar systems.
At present, Bangladesh has a generation capacity of 1.558 gigawatts of clean energy, including 1.264 gigawatts alone from solar sources.
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